Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL) Hits New 1-Year High – Should You Buy?

Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL) shares reached a new 52-week high on Monday . The company traded as high as $293.95 and last traded at $289.9850, with a volume of 23179158 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $276.41.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on GOOGL shares. Loop Capital raised their target price on Alphabet from $190.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, October 24th. DA Davidson boosted their price target on shares of Alphabet from $190.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 30th. Daiwa Capital Markets increased their price objective on shares of Alphabet from $233.00 to $333.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, November 6th. Citic Securities boosted their target price on Alphabet from $230.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, November 3rd. Finally, Robert W. Baird upped their price target on Alphabet from $215.00 to $275.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, September 22nd. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-seven have issued a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $304.10.

Alphabet Stock Up 4.3%

The firm has a 50-day moving average of $257.24 and a two-hundred day moving average of $209.28. The company has a quick ratio of 1.90, a current ratio of 1.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. The company has a market capitalization of $3.48 trillion, a PE ratio of 28.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 1.05.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 29th. The information services provider reported $2.87 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.29 by $0.58. Alphabet had a return on equity of 36.08% and a net margin of 32.23%.The business had revenue of $102.35 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $99.90 billion. Equities research analysts predict that Alphabet Inc. will post 8.9 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Alphabet Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 15th. Investors of record on Monday, December 8th will be issued a $0.21 dividend. This represents a $0.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 8th. Alphabet’s payout ratio is currently 8.28%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Alphabet

In other Alphabet news, Director John L. Hennessy sold 600 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $242.92, for a total value of $145,752.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 5,116 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,242,778.72. This trade represents a 10.50% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Sundar Pichai sold 32,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $283.48, for a total transaction of $9,213,100.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 2,337,119 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $662,526,494.12. This trade represents a 1.37% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders have sold 221,796 shares of company stock valued at $53,983,001. Corporate insiders own 11.64% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Alphabet

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of GOOGL. Guardian Wealth Management Inc. grew its holdings in Alphabet by 242.9% during the 1st quarter. Guardian Wealth Management Inc. now owns 168 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 119 shares in the last quarter. IMA Advisory Services Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Alphabet during the first quarter worth $28,000. NBZ Investment Advisors LLC raised its stake in Alphabet by 85.7% in the first quarter. NBZ Investment Advisors LLC now owns 195 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 90 shares in the last quarter. Financial Gravity Companies Inc. purchased a new stake in Alphabet during the 2nd quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, CarsonAllaria Wealth Management Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Alphabet by 36.4% during the 2nd quarter. CarsonAllaria Wealth Management Ltd. now owns 251 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $44,000 after acquiring an additional 67 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 40.03% of the company’s stock.

Alphabet Company Profile

Alphabet Inc offers various products and platforms in the United States, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, the Asia-Pacific, Canada, and Latin America. It operates through Google Services, Google Cloud, and Other Bets segments. The Google Services segment provides products and services, including ads, Android, Chrome, devices, Gmail, Google Drive, Google Maps, Google Photos, Google Play, Search, and YouTube.